Netherlands
CEO | COO | Experienced Business Operations Executive | Builder of Teams | Business Developer Senior executive with 20+ years building, aligning, and synchronising teams across fintech, banking, payments, and digital media businesses. Has operated as Chief of Staff, Chief Operating Officer, interim CEO, and Managing Director across organisations ranging from early-stage startups to large listed businesses, always as an embedded, full-time operator rather than an external adviser. The consistent mandate across every engagement: enter a business where the leadership is stretched, get the teams working together, and make sure strategy translates into execution. Particularly effective in three situations: businesses expanding into new markets that need the operational and commercial infrastructure to support growth without breaking what already works; organisations going through change, whether that is a merger, acquisition, or leadership transition, that need someone to hold things together and drive delivery; and leadership teams where the CEO has become the bottleneck and needs a trusted partner to carry execution across functions. Has lived and worked in South Africa, the Netherlands, Dubai, Singapore, Nairobi, and Czech Republic. Comfortable operating across cultures, time zones, and organisational structures. Available for remote, hybrid, or on-site roles and open to relocation or regular travel wherever the role requires.
CEO | COO | Experienced Business Operations Executive | Builder of Teams | Business Developer I help businesses move from complexity to clarity — and from strategy to execution. Over the past 20 years, I’ve built, scaled, and restructured businesses across fintech, technology, and high-growth environments. My career has spanned product, operations, international expansion, commercial strategy, and executive leadership. I’ve worked with founders, boards, and cross-functional teams to unlock growth, develop resilient teams, and deliver results in moments of both opportunity and challenge. Today, I operate as a fractional Chief of Other (COO)— stepping into businesses where conventional roles don’t fit, but experienced, cross-functional leadership is essential. I bring a generalist’s mindset, backed by deep operational experience and a track record of driving impact across disciplines. If you’re navigating growth, change, or ambiguity — and need someone to bridge the gap between vision and delivery — I’d love to connect. My skills in business development, building teams and problem solving are well suited to the startup world. I’m looking for a role with a dynamic team where I can add to a talented team and help the company scale.
As Chief of Staff, I play a key leadership role in driving strategic priorities and managing cross-functional projects. I work closely with the CEO and senior leadership, ensuring that decision-making and execution are aligned with the company’s goals. My responsibilities include overseeing daily operations, facilitating communication across teams, and advising on business strategy. By coordinating high-level initiatives and optimizing organizational efficiency, I help ensure that the business runs smoothly and stays focused on its objectives.
De Risk International provides Reward Risk Coverage for consumer facing campaigns or promotions with a reward component. De Risk International works with advertising agency or existing rewards partner and also supply a full end to end solution including GDPR compliant mechanics, platforms and digital consumer rewards for the ultimate consumer behaviour change engine. I led the establishment of European business operations for a specialist provider of reward risk coverage and consumer promotion solutions. Responsible for building the operational foundation across training, recruitment, and business systems to support advertising agencies and rewards partners delivering GDPR-compliant consumer engagement campaigns across European markets. Also helped with the establishment of the South American operations.
• Oversaw local operations as the Managing Director for Papaya Global's entity in the Netherlands. • Registered company representative with the Dutch National Bank (DNB), ensuring reporting compliance and governance. • Acted as secretary and board member for the local entity
Selection, negotiation and configuration of subscription and payment service (Payment Service Provider, acquirer, subscription management service) also set up customer support, content ops and payment function and team